Analysis of the salient features of Beck’s cognitive theory Essay Example for Free

Analysis of the salient features of Beck’s cognitive theory Essay Beck’s cognitive theory assumes that most psychological problems arise from faulty thinking processes. The theory is centred on three factors that form what can be illustrated as a triad. Beck (1976) noted that the three factors that affect the human mind’s capabilities are thoughts, antecedent events and behavior (Figure 1). Figure 1: The foundation of Beck’s (1976) concept of the cognitive theory Source: Created from the description by Bandura (1976) A point worth noting is that these factors cannot act on their own as they do so in synergy with other factors. For instance, behavior is affected by the environment; thoughts are affected by the self (individual); and antecedent events are influenced by the current events. Beck’s cognitive theory perceives antecedent events, thoughts and behavior to be dynamic. In addition, according to (1998), each of the three constituents of the triad is capable of affecting others. However, Beck (1976) notes that in evaluating the triad, cognition or thoughts require more emphasis. This is because it is through thoughts that human beings are able to change their beliefs, attitudes, interpretation and perceptions in different instances. Moreover, thoughts or cognitive factors serve as a platform for filtering or appraising events. In line with this, if the human mind is biased towards one event at the expense of another, the thinking process would elicit some form of emotional and behavioral responses that would imply some problems in life. Therefore, according to this theory, the way human beings think could actually change the way they feel and behave. The cognitive theory serves as a way of understanding and treating depression due to the approach it takes in addressing the various faculties of the mind. In addition, since it highlights issues related to mental capabilities, it is appropriate for addressing mental health issues and other instances of disorders that arise due to depression or factors such as substance use. In postulating the theory, Beck was of the opinion that depressed people often have low opinion of themselves. Precisely, Beck suggested that depressed people believe that the world, their future, and they themselves were the causes of their depression. In addition, Beck (1998) noted that people might be faced with psychological difficulties due to occurrence of automatic thoughts, negative self-assessments and dysfunctional assumptions. Moreover, Beck connoted that automatic thoughts usually pave the way for emotions but occur considerably fast with the affected individual’s little awareness. As a result, such individuals do not view themselves with high esteem. As an example, people affected by stress may address themselves in considerably high critical tones; they also blame themselves for every mishap that befalls them. Beck’s theory and depression Beck (1987) noted that depressed people, apart from having a low opinion of themselves, also develop schemas in their minds such as â€Å"if many people hate me then I am worthless. † Nevertheless, such beliefs are usually primitive, overstated and rigid. It is worthy noting that the self schemas developed in the minds pf distressed people are usually stable but latent and only discernible when they are stimulated by social stressors (for instance when a person provokes the distressed individual) (Beck, 1987). Once the distressed person is provoked, the depressive diagram in the mind of the individual becomes activated by the stress of the event (provocation) and results into a two-fold consequence (Beck, 1976). The first effect is that the content of the distressed person becomes negative. This is characterized by a cognitive triad and the person develops negative beliefs about himself or herself, the world and the future (i. e. every aspect of the cognitive triad becomes negative). In the second phase, there is a systematic bias in the mind that characterized by distortion of information processing capability and being prone to committing errors. Although not all forms of depression are caused by stimulation of the self-schemas, Beck viewed the negative cognitive triad and negative processing of information as the intrinsic features of all depressions (Beck, 1987). The result of the negative schema is fear for all activities by the individual. This is in spite of the fact that some activities could be easily accomplished. For instance, a negative evaluation of self worth may be â€Å"I am unworthy, I just can’t do this†; and a negative evaluation of the world or daily events may be â€Å"Everything that happens to me is just enough evidence that my world is crumbling, this world does not need me. † On the other hand, a distressed person’s evaluation of the future may be â€Å"It seems that nothing will ever get better for me even in future. † From the above illustration, Becks Cognitive Model of Depression clearly shows how early experiences in life can lead to the development of dysfunctional beliefs, which in turn cause individuals to have negative self-views, which in turn result into depression (Beck, 1987).

Lipids :: essays research papers

Lipids The subject I will cover is lipids. I will tell you about the description of it’ s organic compound. I will tell you where it is found. I will tell you what the uses are in plants and animals. I will also tell you about it’s chemical structure and give examples of types of these compounds, such as cholesterol. The organic compound of lipids have many similarities. They are almost always greasy, fatty, oily, or waxy. They do not dissolve in water, but they do in other organic solvents. This is like if you get grease on your hands it is hard to wash of because it seems to repel the water. You can find lipids in many places. They are usually in fatty foods like butter, salad dressing, and cooking oils. They can also be found inside of animals as the form of fat. Lipids are always found in fat because when you get a build up of lipids it forms fat. Lipids have many uses amongst plants and animals. The main use of these are for energy and storing energy. When they store energy they make triglycerides also known as fat. There are also many other uses such as insulation and protection. They are also used in making cell membranes. They make it so that the cell can maintain it’s shape by keeping water and water-soluble compounds from passing through it. The lipids that are waxy are usually used to make protective coatings on the surface of plants and animals. Since a lipid is an organic compound it contains carbon. They also contain hydrogen and oxygen, but in some very complex chains there is also phosphorus and/or nitrogen. Lipids are made by the dehydration synthesis of glycerol and fatty acids. This is when three molecules of fatty acids combine with one molecule of glycerol by taking water out of the solution. Lipids are always huge molecules, which means they have a lot of energy like twice as much as sugar. This is because more energy goes into making it so you get more out of it when it is broken down. The following is what a lipid would look like. When lipids are made they can produce many different compounds. One of those is phospholipids. These are what help make cell membranes and keep water out of them. They also make a very common lipid and that is cholesterol. Cholesterol is and extremely complex lipid. It builds up on the inner walls of the arteries. Lipids :: essays research papers Lipids The subject I will cover is lipids. I will tell you about the description of it’ s organic compound. I will tell you where it is found. I will tell you what the uses are in plants and animals. I will also tell you about it’s chemical structure and give examples of types of these compounds, such as cholesterol. The organic compound of lipids have many similarities. They are almost always greasy, fatty, oily, or waxy. They do not dissolve in water, but they do in other organic solvents. This is like if you get grease on your hands it is hard to wash of because it seems to repel the water. You can find lipids in many places. They are usually in fatty foods like butter, salad dressing, and cooking oils. They can also be found inside of animals as the form of fat. Lipids are always found in fat because when you get a build up of lipids it forms fat. Lipids have many uses amongst plants and animals. The main use of these are for energy and storing energy. When they store energy they make triglycerides also known as fat. There are also many other uses such as insulation and protection. They are also used in making cell membranes. They make it so that the cell can maintain it’s shape by keeping water and water-soluble compounds from passing through it. The lipids that are waxy are usually used to make protective coatings on the surface of plants and animals. Since a lipid is an organic compound it contains carbon. They also contain hydrogen and oxygen, but in some very complex chains there is also phosphorus and/or nitrogen. Lipids are made by the dehydration synthesis of glycerol and fatty acids. This is when three molecules of fatty acids combine with one molecule of glycerol by taking water out of the solution. Lipids are always huge molecules, which means they have a lot of energy like twice as much as sugar. This is because more energy goes into making it so you get more out of it when it is broken down. The following is what a lipid would look like. When lipids are made they can produce many different compounds. One of those is phospholipids. These are what help make cell membranes and keep water out of them. They also make a very common lipid and that is cholesterol. Cholesterol is and extremely complex lipid. It builds up on the inner walls of the arteries.

War on Terror Research Paper

War on Terror Do you ever have one of those moments in your life in which you will never forget where you were? I remember waking up early on September 11, 2001, getting ready for school and my dad telling me hurry up to watch the news with him. Being in 8th grade at the time, the news really wasn’t something I would watch in the mornings so I knew it had to be something important. Then I saw it. An airplane crashing into a tower, people panicking, and mayhem ensuing in a city very well known to me. When any tragic event like 9/11 occurs, the effect it will have on a nation is tremendous.It left America in shock, anger, and sadness just to name a few adjectives to describe the insurmountable amount of feelings that we felt on that day. With America being such a powerful nation, after recovering from the attack the next ideal step would be to seek retaliation, right? Well on October 7th 2001, the war in Afghanistan began marking the first step in the War on Terror. The 9/11 tra gedy was very devastating to the American morale and our sense of security. America being so powerful and strong it may be logical to see how we had a false sense of security when it came to attacks on us.I mean, who would really want to attack one of the strongest nations on Earth? No other nation in their right mind would, right? Wrong. When those two planes hit our towers and another hitting the pentagon we were slapped with a reality check. We weren’t as safe as we thought we were. To add onto things, on September 18th and October 9th, 2001, we were hit by the anthrax attack that killed five and injured seventeen Americans. Something had to be done about this. We shouldn’t be letting other nations attack us like this. So George W. Bush began the War on Terror.The single person who took responsibility for these attacks on America is the notorious Osama Bin Laden. Bin Laden founded the jihadist terrorist organization known as al-Qaeda at around 1988 to late 1989. The al-Qaeda, which translates into â€Å"The Base,† is well known for the September 11th attacks on the United States, but is also responsible for the 1998 US embassy bombings as well as the 2002 bombings in Bali. The war on terror started with America going on the offensive against al-Qaeda in Afghanistan. With Osama bin laden becoming the most wanted criminal in the United States, f not the entire world, other countries would join in our attempt to dismantle the al-Qaeda and their usage of Afghanistan as a home base. Australia, United Kingdom, and the united afghan front became our allies in the war in Afghanistan. These nations would launch Operation Enduring Freedom. While Operation Enduring Freedom was mainly targeting Afghanistan, it also had many subordinate operations. Along with Afghanistan, there were operations in the Philippines, Horn of Africa/Somalia, Pankisi Gorge, Trans Sahara, Caribbean and Central America, and Kyrgyzstan.The terrorist regimes were placed all o ver the world and the nations fighting terrorism found it necessary to assist these other countries in eliminating those hostile forces in their territory. Operation Enduring Freedom – Philippines is a currently active mission to fight the terrorist forces of Abu Sayyaf and Jemaah Islamiyah. Abu Sayyaf is an Islamist separatist group that was residing around the southern islands of the Republic of the Philippines while Jamaah Islamiyah is a militant Islamic terrorist group that was spread out through Southeast Asia in Indonesia, Singapore, Malaysia, Brunei, parts of Thailand, and the Philippines.This operation is still ongoing and has tallied 17 US soldier casualties with >315 enemies killed, including Abu Sayyaf leader Janjalani. Another one of the Operation Enduring Freedom missions was the Horn of Africa (Northeast Africa/Somali Peninsula). This mission was dedicated to stopping terrorism and piracy in the Horn of Africa. The United States lost 29 due to non-combat fata lities, but so far have been able to kill 149-160 insurgents, 67-78 pirates, and captured around 1000 pirates. This mission is still ongoing since October 7th, 2002.There was also another operation held in Africa referred to as Operation Enduring Freedom – Trans Sahara. A 500 million budget was approved for the Trans-Saharan Counterterrorism Initiative (TSCTI) that would be spent over a six-year span to support those countries that were facing threats from the al-Qaeda. These countries were primarily Chad, Algeria, Senegal, Nigeria, Morocco, Mali, and Mauritania. Along with the attempts to thwart terrorism, the TSCTI were also focusing on drug and weapon trafficking. One of the main points of this specific mission was to train these 10 nations with the ecessary skills and equipment to combat these problems on their own. The last two Operation Enduring Freedom missions are â€Å"Caribbean and Central America† and Kyrgyzstan. The Caribbean and Central American mission ha s forces deployed in El Salvador, Suriname, Guyana, Trinidad & Tobago, Belize, Honduras, and Costa Rica. The US Air Force at Manas International Airport primarily runs the operation in Kyrgyzstan near the capitol Bishkek. Now onto the main mission in Operation Enduring Freedom, the War in Afghanistan.The main reason behind this war was to dismantle the al-Qaeda organization and stopping them from using Afghanistan as their base. The United States would also go on to state that they were attempting to take the Taliban out of power and create a nation with a more democratic government. This war began on October 7th, 2001, and is still ongoing today making it the United States longest running war. â€Å"Article 51 permits a victimized state to engage in ‘individual or collective self-defense’ until recourse has been taken by the Security Council to establish peace† (Maogoto, 2003).The reason that this war was criticized so much was because people felt that bombi ng and attacking Afghanistan was not self-defense because the 9/11 attacks were done by non-state actors, not Afghanistan’s own army. Either way, President George W. Bush was given authorization by Congress to go ahead and begin the war against Afghanistan on September 18th 2001, when a legislation called â€Å"Authorization for Use of Military Forces Against Terrorists,† was passed. With the War in Afghanistan being the longest war that the US has run, it is understandable that there are many losses.In our coalition there were 3,097 killed with 2,031 of them being from the United States, over 23,500 wounded, and 1 missing/captured. Of the contractors hired, there were 1,143 killed and over 15,000 wounded. The Afghan Security Forces lost 10,086+ and the Afghan Northern Alliance lost over 200. As for the opposing forces, there was no real reliable estimate, but the Taliban forces were estimated to be around 25,000 strong. One of the more shocking numbers to be brought u p in losses is how many civilians were killed during the attacks.A rough estimate of civilian casualties is 12,500 – 14,700. While there were many causes for the civilian casualties, the majority of the losses came from the airstrikes and improvised explosives by the insurgents. The civilian deaths caused a lot of tension between the foreign countries and Afghanistan government causing President Karzai to summon his foreign military commanders to tell them â€Å"his people’s patience was wearing thin† (BBC, 2007). Even though there were many losses suffered by all participants and those civilians, there was a huge victory for the United States on May 2nd, 2011.This was the day that al-Qaeda leader, Osama Bin Laden, was finally shot and killed by the US forces in Pakistan (BBC, 2011). They would later confirm the death through DNA tests This could have also been another one of those â€Å"you’ll never forget where you were† events for many seeing ho w he caused so much damage with the 9/11 attacks. The next war to start after Operation Enduring Freedom began was the Iraq war. The reasons behind this war have been extremely debated and discussed since it started. The official factors were listed in the â€Å"Iraq Resolution. † Here are some of the reasons to invade Iraq (President George W.Bush, 2002): * Members of al-Qaeda, the ones responsible for attacks on the US, were residing in Iraq. * Iraq paid bounties to suicide bomber’s families. * Iraq was brutally repressing their civilian population. * Iraq was not complying with the 1991 ceasefire agreement while also interfering with U. N. weapons instructors. * Iraq was â€Å"continuing to aid and harbor other international terrorist organizations,† that also included anti-United States terrorist organizations. * Turkey, Kuwait, and Saudi Arabia wanted Saddam out of power in Iraq and feared what he may do.Those were listing only a few reasons, but another bi g factor in the Iraq War was that Saddam Hussein did not stop producing weapons of mass destruction in 2003 after the Duelfer Report revealed that information. In 1991, Hussein’s WMD capability was essentially destroyed by sanctions to restore Iraq’s economy to a more stable condition. On October 21, 2011, Obama announced, â€Å"After nearly 9 years, America’s war in Iraq will be over. † The last troops to leave Iraq were leaving by January 1st, 2012, and that the troops in Afghanistan would start to come home as well.A big problem that these wars caused for America, aside from the casualties, was how much money was spent. A lot of people look at the War on Terror and the Iraq War as the main reasons the American economy has taken a huge dive the last decade or so. From 2001 through 2011 the Afghanistan war cost the United States about $433 billion dollars (Bingham, 2012). The Iraq war has cost about $806 billion dollars so far, but Obama has said it may cost over $1 trillion dollars when it is all over (Krutzleben, 2011).However, with all these wars not completely wrapped up, the final price of war could be as high as $4. 4 trillion dollars when all is told (costofwar. org, 2012). War affects every country involved, but specifically the veterans who participated and contributed to the war. It would only seem logical that those countries that have had veterans deployed and fight for their nation should be taking care of them as best they can. From the veterans who came back from the Iraq war, 20. 3% of active soldiers and 42. 4% of reserve soldiers required mental health treatment (Milliken, 2007).The total numbers of those diagnosed with Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder from the Iraq and Afghanistan war is about 30% of the 834,463 who were in those wars (Reno, 2012). These numbers were only the veterans that were treated by the V. A. (Veteran’s Association) hospitals, so there could actually be more who have not looked for fur ther treatment after returning. With some of these numbers rising as more soldiers are returning from the wars, this would mean the V. A. hospitals would need to hire more mental health professionals to deal with the influx in PTSD cases continuing to go up.The V. A. has increased their mental health investments by more than 1/3rd in the last three years. They have â€Å"hired more than 4,000 mental health professionals† and in April 2012 have announced they will add 1,600 more professionals, totaling their mental health staff to 22,000 (Reno, 2012). War has never been a good thing and there is never one side that is completely victorious when you consider how many people are killed on each side, civilians included. After the 9/11 attacks on the United States it would be hard to simply let that go unpunished, something HAD to be done.As unpopular war is in the United States, there was a lot of support from the nation as a whole. I personally found it hard for there to be some type of peaceful way to come to an agreement with a terrorist organization so I also supported the war. The cost of these wars have been devastating to our economy though and a lot of people thought we were in these places for too long trying to do too much. Overall, it’s really hard to judge whether these wars have been a success. It’s really a matter of opinion and how a person wants to analyze the results.I can only hope that we defend our nation much better, that all the troops come back, and that they receive the care they all deserve. We are doing our veterans a great disservice if we cannot properly accommodate them for life after war. Bibliography Bilmes, L. (2006, February). The economic costs of the iraq war: An appraisal threeyears after the beginning of the conflict. Retrieved fromhttp://www. nber. org/papers/w12054. pdf? new_window=1 Bingham, A. (2012, May). Afghanistan War by the Numbers: Lives Lost, Billions Spent. Retrieved from http://abcnews. go. om/ Politics/OTUS/billions-dollars-thousandslives-lost-afghanistan-war/story? id=16256292#. UIRxJmk4WA0 Faiz, S. (2006, March 17). A timeline of the iraq war. Retrieved fromhttp://thinkprogress. org/report/iraq-timeline/? mobile=nc Hoven, R. (2012, September 6). An iraq war every year. Retrieved fromhttp://www. americanthinker. com/blog/2012/09/an_iraq_war_every_year. html Iraq War Veterans. (2004, July). Iraq veterans against the war. Retrieved fromhttp://www. ivaw. org/ Kellner, D. (2004, December). Bring 'em on: Media and politics in the iraq war. Retrieved fromhttp://books. google. com/books? l=en;amp;lr=;amp;id=10BiGSdCyVQC;amp;oi=fnd;amp;pg=R7;amp;dq=iraq war;amp;ots=DpgUR6Ohbz;amp;sig=cb0_JxEuXqNrmyLL2WQEWCNLFY Kurtzleben, D. (2011, December). What Did the Iraq War Cost? More Than You Think. Retrieved from http://www. usnews. com/news/articles/2011/12/15/what-did-theiraq-war-cost-more-than-you-think Milliken, C. (2007, Novemeber 14). Longitudinal assessment of mental health probl emamong active and reserve component soldiers returning from the iraq war. Retrieved from http://jama. jamanetwork. com/article. aspx? articleid=209441 Montopoli, B. (2011, October 21). Obama announces end of iraq war, troops to returnhome by year end.Retrieved from http://www. cbsnews. com/8301-503544_16220123800-503544/obama-announces-end-of-iraq-war-troops-to-return-home-by-year-end/ Rainie, L. (n. d. ). The internet and the iraq war. Retrieved fromhttp://www. pewinternet. org/~/media/Files/Reports/2003/PIP_Iraq_War_Report. pdf. pdf Reno, J (2012, October) Nearly 30% of Vets Treated by V. A. Have PTSD Retrieved fromhttp://www. thedailybeast. com/articles/2012/10/21/nearly-30-of-vets-treated-by-va-have-ptsd. html War in iraq. (n. d. ). Retrieved from http://www. iraq-war. ru/ Wilson, R. (2005). Human rights in the ‘war on terror'. Cambridge University Press.

How Do Pentraxins Help Detect Alzheimer s Disease Humans

Briana Momchilovich BIO 206 Writing Assignment #3 Detailed focus question: How do pentraxins help detect Alzheimer’s disease in humans? I. At the beginning to have a good understanding of the topic I will explain what the functions or calcium-binding proteins and the locations of calcium-binding proteins. I am going to do this so the reader has a better background understanding on the main topic of the paper. A. Functions of calcium-binding proteins (Swanson el al., 1992). 1. Regulates mostly cellular processes. a. They are needed for second messenger signals. 2. Calcium-binding proteins bind directly to Ca2+. a. Regulates the amount of Ca2+ in the cytosol. 3. They have a huge effect on neurons. a. This has an effect on learning and†¦show more content†¦3. The C-reactive protein is usually produced in the liver of humans. C. SAP – Serum amyloid P (Swanson el al., 1992). 1. The basic feature of serum amyloid P is it has a high relationship with phospholipids that are negatively charged. 2. The function of serum amyloid P binds to calcium and it consists of a dimer of pentamer. a. This allows for defense from pathogens from the body. 3. Serum amyloid P is usually produced in the liver of humans. III. This last section I will combine all of the ideas that were made above. I will talk about what Alzheimer’s disease is and how C-reactive proteins and serum amyloid P proteins relationship to Alzheimer’s disease. A. Alzheimer’s disease is a very common disease in the older generations (Dominguez-Prieto el al., 2017). 1. The disease is a progressive disease and it ends up leading to loss of memory. 2. Alzheimer’s disease is caused by the increase of beta-amyloid protein. a. Beta-amyloid protein is what leads to nerve cells dying. 3. Genetic too have a lot to do with Alzheimer’s disease also. a. When a person has a certain gene mutation they are a lot more likely to have Alzheimer’s disease. b. The apoE4 gene is the gene that has the strongest correlation with Alzheimer’s disease. B. C-reactive proteins relationship to Alzheimer’s disease (Yarchoan el al., 2013). 1. There is an increase of C-reactive proteins in people that have Alzheimer’s disease.